The First Time
by Shtuff
Summary: The first time Kiba noticed her was the first time he ever saw a Hyuuga cry. OneShot


**Disclaimer: **_Naruto_ and the characters thereof are not mine.

**Author's Note: **Yeah, this is a weird pairing, I know. How I stumbled across it remains a mystery. This story is written in the 20 truths format. Hope you enjoy!

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The first time Hanabi noticed him was when Hinata ran out to meet her teammates, a smile shining across her face. It was also the first time Hanabi envied her older sister—Hanabi was the Hyuuga heiress, but her sister was the one with friends.

The first time Kiba noticed her was the first time he ever saw a Hyuuga cry. Hanabi was sitting next to her father, tears streaming down her face—a direct contrast to her father's stoic features. Kiba had wanted to ask Hiashi why he didn't care that his oldest daughter was dead, but he just left instead.

The first time they spoke to each other was at the memorial stone. Her words were muffled by the sobs, but Kiba heard her question. He had asked it of himself, too. Why did Hinata have to die? He explained to Hanabi slow and halting that he had tried to save her, but Hinata had died saving the ones she loved.

The first time they carried a real conversation was weeks later when Hanabi asked Kiba what her sister had been like. He told her, his eyes fixed the entire time on the memorial stone. He missed the tears sliding down Hanabi's face as she mourned for the sister she would never know.

The first time Kiba realized that Hinata's younger sister was his friend was the day he realized that he had stopped thinking of her as Hinata's younger sister. His friends—mainly Naruto—asked where he was spending his time. Kiba told him to leave him alone. Naruto laughed.

The first time Hanabi laughed, Kiba was so shocked that he fell off a bridge and landed in the stream. Hanabi laughed harder, holding Akamaru close in her arms. Kiba pretended to be angry, but they both saw right through his act. After that, Kiba tried to make her laugh as often as he could. He never told her, but he loved her laugh.

The first time Hanabi held Kiba was when he cried because he had stopped mourning for Hinata. Kiba's tears soaked through Hanabi's shirt until her shoulder was damp, but she didn't mind. She whispered words of comfort while rubbing Kiba's back until his lament was finished. Hanabi never told him, but her heart broke seeing him in distress.

The first time Kiba admitted to himself that he might like Hanabi as more than a friend was when he went shopping for her birthday present. He found himself worrying that he wouldn't find the right gift. When he asked Neji for advice, the older Hyuuga laughed and said that Hanabi would like anything that Kiba got for her. Kiba still worried, though.

The first time Hanabi killed someone on a mission, she ran to Kiba's house the night she got back to Konoha. He opened the door and, seeing her tear- and blood-streaked face, didn't seem to care that it was two-thirty in the morning. It was his turn to hold her as she cried. He cried, too—he cried for the loss of her innocence. They sat on the roof, silent, until the sun rose.

The first time Kiba asked her out on a date, he was so nervous that he could barely get the words out. She said yes, though, and all Kiba had to worry about after that was the inevitable confrontation with Hiashi. Luckily, when he went to pick Hanabi up, Neji was there, too. Hiashi only gave a quick lecture about the reputation of the Hyuuga clan, ending with the time that Hanabi was to be home. Kiba had her home fifteen minutes early. When Neji asked Hanabi how the evening went, she smiled wistfully but refused to say anything.

The first time they kissed, Hanabi gave Kiba a quick peck on the cheek, turned pink, and disappeared into the house. Kiba walked away with a grin on his face—Hanabi knows because she watched him from the window. Neji snorted at his cousin's childish antics, but he was inwardly happy for her. He just liked to tease her about the fact that her clothes were always coated in Akamaru's fur.

The first time they were seen holding hands in public, Shino just raised his eyebrows—at least, that's what Kiba says. No one else could see said eyebrows to confirm or deny Kiba's claim. Everyone else nearly had a heart attack. Kiba always laughed that that was the one time he had ever seen Naruto speechless.

The first time Hanabi defied her father's wishes was when she insisted on training under Haruno Sakura to become a medic nin. Kiba knows that she had never been able to kill another person after that first time. He was also the only one to know that she had been planning this for a while. Hanabi told him that she became a ninja to protect people, not hurt them. He supported her decision and, after a while, so did her father.

The first time Kiba thought of marriage was when he realized that he couldn't imagine his life without Hanabi in it. He decided that their relationship had defied enough of the Hyuuga traditions, so he went to Hiashi first. Kiba would always remember the look on Hanabi's face when Akamaru brought her a ring that he had "found". Six months later, Kiba and Hanabi moved into a new section of the Hyuuga main house.

The first time the Hokage approached Kiba with the offer of an ANBU position, he told her he would think about it. He spoke about it with Hanabi and, after some discussion, he returned to the Hokage to formally decline the offer. Later, when Naruto asked him why he had turned the offer down, Kiba told him that Hanabi's worst nightmare was having to patch her husband up in the hospital. Kiba knew Naruto couldn't understand, but when they had said their vows, Kiba had promised to take care of Hanabi. And that meant doing what was best for her instead of himself.

The first time Hanabi didn't meet Kiba for lunch, he went to the hospital to look for her. She sat in her office, looking slightly dazed—which automatically worried Kiba. He asked her if everything was okay and was surprised and confused when she started smiling. After Hanabi told him that she was pregnant, Kiba took her out for their lunch date, telling everyone they met along the way the good news.

The first time Kiba was sent out on an S-ranked mission since their marriage, Hanabi begged him not to go. Kiba apologized, saying that he had no choice. At the gate, Hanabi hugged him tightly. When she let him go, Kiba looked into her eyes and told her that he loved her. Not trusting her voice, Hanabi just nodded. As he walked away, Hanabi allowed the tears that had been pooling in her eyes to fall to the ground. "I love you," she whispered. "Come back to me safely." Kiba wasn't meant to hear those words, but he did.

The first time that Kiba realized that the mission had gone wrong, he realized that it was already too late. His faithful companion at his side, Kiba fought. He fought for the messenger that they were with to get away in time. He fought to protect Konoha. He fought knowing that he would never see his wife again. By the time Akamaru had fallen, Kiba knew that they had succeeded in a way. The messenger had escaped with his message. Their enemies left Kiba for dead, since he was the only one left and badly wounded. With the last of his strength, Kiba wrote his last goodbye to his beloved wife in the bark of a tree. He closed his eyes, wishing that he could have seen her smile one last time.

The first time Shikamaru spoke to Hanabi was to tell her that his ANBU squad has come across the group Kiba was with in the woods. He told her about the message that had been carved in the tree. Hanabi knew before it was said that her husband wasn't coming home. This time, it was Neji who comforted her as she wept for her loss. Hanabi asked why it had to be Kiba that was sent on that mission. Neji had no answer.

The first time Hanabi's son asked about his father, she took him to the memorial stone and showed him the name Inuzuka Kiba that had been carved there years ago. She told her son about Kiba, the father he would never know. The young boy looked up at her, his eyes the same pale color as hers, and asked what his father had looked like. Hanabi smiled sadly. "Like you," she answered. As they walked home that day, a small puppy ran out, barking. Hanabi let her son keep the pup, knowing that he was more Inuzuka than Hyuuga and that the dog would become his constant companion.

_Fin_


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